THE PARKHEAD chief has flown out to China in a bid to turn a chunk of their three billion football fans into Hoops supporters.

PETER LAWWELL is in Asia – on a mission to push Celtic‘s global status.

And the Parkhead chief executive insists Scotland’s champions will not be left behind by Europe’s big guns.

Lawwell is in China, heading a Celtic delegation who are having another crack at smashing their way into a market which boasts three BILLION football fanatics.

With their stock high in Europe as they joust in the Champions League, now is the time for a fresh drive.

Impossible to break the English Premier League’s stranglehold on Chinese monies and interest, it’s that exposure at Europe’s top table which could hold the key.

As the SPFL prepare to secure a deal to have live internet streaming of Premiership games in the country, Lawwell senses the opportunity.

A deal will be signed with a company in China to push the club’s claims and he said: “It’s the third time we have been out this year.

“China is an extraordinary developing country and a powerhouse and whenever these nations develop, football follows.

“They are football crazy, mainly about the Premier League and Champions League but with our profile and exposure, people are now talking about Celtic.

“There is a lot of outward investment coming from China into the UK. They are looking for a presence and they are looking to invest in a lot of Western European companies and brands.

“Football follows and we are going out there to find out what is going on.

“We will sign an agreement with a Chinese company who are going to represent us.

“It’s not investment into the club. It’s about sponsorship, commercial and maybe some social projects and it’s off our own back.

“We’ll go to Beijing as we,have contacts there and it’s all about getting the Celtic name out there – whether that is through social, grassroots projects, whether it is academies here or sponsorship.

“For a Champions League club, that is the proposition.

“The difficulty we have in any international sponsorship is the competition, which is mainly the Premier League. They say they have three billion people who watch the English league.

“Manchester United claim they have 600 million supporters. That is the challenge. How do we, playing in Scotland with little exposure, attract sponsorship?

“Champions League is one. For Chinese companies looking to establish themselves in Europe, they get a bit of profile.

“For Chinese businesses who are buying brands to take back, it gives profile.

“Hopefully, they like us and our values and want to be part of it.”

Chief scout John Park is also in China, looking at ways to open the footballing links.

Lawwell added: “John is going to meet a few people, see who is there and maybe take in a game or two.”

But although the Parkhead chief is in Asia, he’s got a finger very much on the pulse of what’s going on in his own continent.

Fresh news has broken this week from Galatasaray chairman Unal Aysal, who believes Europe’s biggest clubs are actively plotting to set up a European Super League in the next five years.

Aysal and Juventus president Andrea Agnelli have raised concerns about the structure of the Champions League and believe it will be replaced by a competition of the continent’s 20 top teams. The Galatasary chief insists it will happen and Lawwell is aware of the talk.

At this stage, he’s doesn’t see change on the immediate horizon. He said: “There’s always discussion and chatter around it but at the moment I don’t think there’s any structure behind it.

“But who knows? The dynamic is that the strong get stronger and the weak get weaker.

“UEFA are beginning to realise that and their possible solution is this regional league concept. It creates bigger markets and bigger media rights for smaller nations to be able to compete.

“You could go all the way back to G14. There’s always that threat. At the moment, my interpretation is that the relationships are okay between the clubs in the ECA and UEFA and I don’t see any major breakaway in the next few years anyway.

“Competition is the lifeblood of sport, so if something does happen, then you have to think there is a possibility of it in the longer term.”

Despite his views on the situation being stagnant at this precise moment, Lawwell is making sure that if something big does go down, his club are in position.

Celtic would argue strongly they belong among a Top 20 in Europe but market forces will come into the equation.

Should a new concept come to pass, you can assume populations and the monies TV companies from each respective team’s nations could invest.

Lawwell knows nothing is black and white but is convinced that no superpowers will be making any decisions without consulting Celtic.

He said: “I keep saying we are a top-class European football club in everything we do and it helps. When we travel, we benchmark and we compare and we match up very, very well.

“So the opportunity to show ourselves in the Champions League and get that profile and exposure and bring people to Scotland and see what Celtic is, not just on the park or the support but what we do off the field, enhances that reputation.

“We’re keeping in touch with our contacts in the ECA in terms of what is happening in the bigger picture.

“Therefore, we’d like to think that if there is change, then we would be involved in the discussion.”